Universities on the Brink of a Nervous Breakdown

What Will It Take to Redesign and Reinvigorate American Higher Education?

Pretty much anyone you talk to in America today has an opinion about what’s wrong with our universities. Parents think they’re too expensive. Recent graduates fear being crushed by debt and ending up untrained for the current job market. Professors worry that entering students have not been adequately prepared by their high schools. Economists and sociologists point to troubling studies about a lack of diversity—in both income and race—on American campuses. In Silicon Valley, they talk about MOOCs and STEM, flipped classrooms and gamification. And in Washington, D.C., they talk …

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Is America Still the Home of the Brave?

Tracing a National Tradition from the American Revolutionaries and Amelia Earhart to Graffiti Artists and Venture Capitalists

On January 14, 2015, the world waited with bated breath as Tommy Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson came over the rim of a notoriously steep section of the rock known as …

What Do Grandma Moses and Michelangelo Have in Common?

One Peaked Late. The Other Peaked Early. Both Were Artistic Geniuses.

“Creativity takes courage,” at least according to Henri Matisse. If that’s the case, then at what point in their lives are artists most creative? When they’re young, bold, and taking …

Can a Small City Build a Global Arts Scene?

How Creativity and Collaboration Can Put Riverside on the Cultural Map

To determine if a city has a vibrant arts scene, you’d check out its museums, galleries, and theaters. You’d look into any recurring arts events or festivals. And you’d gauge …

Goodbye, Chalkboard. Hello, Chat Room.

Free Online Courses, Crowdsourcing, and Big Data Are Transforming the University from a Gatekeeper to a Public Resource

In 2001, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology announced it was going to put the university’s entire body of course materials online, for free. That meant syllabuses, as well as problem …

A Cartoon Is a Deadly Weapon

Why Simple Drawings Can Spur Unrest, Fatwas, and Shootings

Cartoons make us laugh. But they can also make us feel anger and powerlessness, fear and loathing. In early January, Al-Qaeda gunmen unleashed a brutal attack on the offices of …